Many people accentuate their fingernails and toenails by filing and buffing them. The top surface of a nail is filed and polished using emery boards, and other similar tools, to produce a surface that shines or that can be decorated with color or a design.
A typical tool for filing nails includes a core or base sheet having at least one abrasive surface. The core is typically a flat, substantially rigid sheet, such as paper, wood, plastic, or foam having two sides. A layer of abrasive is adhered to one or both sides to provide the filing or buffing surfaces of the tool. For two-sided tools, the same abrasive grit is usually provided on both sides, although sometimes a finer grain may be used on one side.
Most nail filing tools have a plain appearance, typically the simple gray or tan color of the sandpaper commonly applied to the surfaces. Alternatively, a more attractive file can be created by decorating the sandpaper surface.
Attempts have been made to provide more attractive emery boards by applying dyes to the surface or subsurface of a nail file, with mixed success. For example, conventional dyes may be painted onto the finished surface of an emery board. The necessary abrasion of the file against a nail, however, tends to remove the color applied, resulting in a progressively faded and unattractive file and/or resulting in color being transferred to the nail. Alternatively, colors may be applied to an intermediate surface of the file. After dyes are painted on the intermediate surface, a finish surface including abrasive material is applied. This overlying finish surface, however, may blur or otherwise obstruct the appearance of the design applied, creating a less desirable effect. Additionally, the adhesives required between the intermediate and finish layer may discolor, detracting from the final appearance of the file.
Thus, there is a need for a nail file/buffer which has an aesthetically appealing appearance. There is also a need for a tool which has a colored or decorative pattern that does not wear off during use.
Additionally, there is a need for a decorative nail file which is inexpensive to manufacture, and that can effectively compete against traditional plain files.